forever isn't too long, when i'm right where i belong
by moriartyscupoftea
Summary: Raphael sat on the living room chair, the cup of tea Magnus had practically forced on him balanced on his knee, while Magnus himself was slouched on the sofa, laughing. "You," he wheezed in between hysterical fits of giggles, "are going to propose? To Simon?" Raphael pursed his lips, praying for strength from anyone.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Um. _Vicky Wilson_ over at ao3 left a comment saying I should do a saphael proposal fic and, well. I delivered. It was fun writing from Raphael's point of view for a change! All Spanish translations are from a random translation site, if they're total bullshit, I'm sorry. ( _broma del siglo_ = joke of the century, _mis labios están sellados_ = my lips are sealed, _novio_ = boyfriend)**

 **Title from Holley Maher's song " _I Do (feat. Jonathan Lister)_ ".**

 **Hit me up in tumblr at _moriartyscupoftea_ , or my sideblog, _saphaelismyjam._**

 **...**

Raphael wouldn't say he was _romantic_ , per se (though some people might disagree). He just had a way with words, and he considered some people more important than others and thought that they should know that. He'd been around for a long time, long enough to know that shallow flattery got you to lots of places, but real confessions earned you a place in someone's heart forever. Or, in one case, for a _month_ before he'd earned a slap to the face and was kicked out to the streets. But he'd rather not think about that.

Raphael turned the wedding ring over in his palm, inspecting it from every angle. It was an old relic from his mother's side, passed down in the family until Raphael had gotten his hands on it. It was a simple silver one, with a blood red stone decorating it, some obscure words carved into the inside of the band, too faded to make sense of anymore. He hummed, placing it back into the velvet box it had been in. He'd have to get something new inscripted into it. Perhaps Magnus could help.

To be honest, Raphael had never thought he'd have to do this. Well, not _have_ to - got to, more like. There had been people in his life, lovers who either had died or had abandoned him, people who were now mere memories, chapters in his life.

But now there was Simon. Simon Lewis. He could still remember the first time they'd fleetingly met, some years ago, like it'd been only a few days. Raphael had made many mistakes in his life, but turning Simon and putting his faith in him wasn't one of them. Of course, proposing to Simon was just a formality by now. He hadn't planned anything big. He just liked the thought of Simon being his, _officially_.

Raphael pocketed the box in his suit coat, standing up from the edge of his bed. He'd have to talk to Magnus. Probably call Clary Fray, to let her know. Inform Simon's sister. And then just ask Simon. He predicted the whole deal would be very simple.

 **...**

The whole deal was _not_ very simple, because Magnus made _everything_ not very simple _._ Raphael sat on his living room chair, the cup of tea Magnus had practically forced on him balanced on his knee, while Magnus himself was slouched on the sofa, laughing. " _You_ ," he wheezed in between hysterical fits of giggles, "are going to _propose_? To _Simon_?" Raphael pursed his lips, praying for strenght from _anyone_. "Yes, I am," he repeated. "And I need your help with the engraving."

Alec appeared from the bedroom with a book, taking one look at the maniacally laughing Magnus and murderous Raphael before rolling his eyes and informing them he was going to make coffee. Magnus sobered up for a second, calling "Make me a cup, too!" after his boyfriend. Alec waved his hand in acknowledgement, before disappearing to the kitchen around the corner.

Magnus sat up, wiping tears from him eyes. "I'm sorry," he said, not sounding the least bit sorry, "but you _have_ to admit this is funny. The great ice queen, Raphael Santiago, _proposing_." He looked like he was about to burst into laughter again, and Raphael rushed to say what he needed to. "Yes, it's hilarious, _broma del siglo_ , but this is important to me, so I need you to focus for once in your life and take your job seriously." Magnus frowned. "I _do_ take my job seriously. Besides, my job isn't to engrave wedding rings, which I'm sure you're aware of. Not that I _can't_ do it, because there's barely nothing I can't do. Right, Alexander?" He asked from Alec who stepped back into the room, the book now wedged under his arm, with two cups of coffee in his hands. Alec looked unimpressed, giving Magnus the other coffee and sitting down next to him. "Sure," he said. Magnus smiled brightly at him.

Raphael desperately hoped he didn't look as hopelessly _smitten_ when he looked at Simon, but he had a suspiscion that he probably did. "So, what's this about?" Alec asked, and Raphael didn't know when he'd stopped being a Shadowhunter and started being the other half of Magnus' business. He did not say this out loud. "I'm proposing to Simon," he stated. Alec raised his brows, but fortunately didn't start laughing. "That's surprisingly sweet," he said. Magnus looked at him, taken aback. "How come you never say things like that to _me_?" Raphael started thinking he would've gotten away with less trouble if he'd walked to a jewelry shop in the middle of the day and had burned to crisp.

"Can you engrave the ring or not, Bane?" Raphael asked impatiently. "I can," Magnus confirmed, smiling. "What do you want it to say? Maybe 'one half of the vampire power couple of the decade'?" Alec snorted, and Magnus looked pleased with himself. Raphael had a feeling he'd be here for a long, long time.

 **...**

"Do you realize it's very late and I have things to do tomorrow?" Clary asked, frowning at Raphael. _More like_ someone _to do_ , he thought. He refrained from saying it out loud, because she was Simon's friend, and Simon always got very cross with him when Raphael insulted his friends. "Yes. But this is important." Clary looked at him, mildly intrigued. "What is it?" Raphael took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself. "Well," he decided to bite the bullet, "I'm going to propose to Simon." Clary spat her coffee back into the cup. Raphael, who found joy in small things, was glad she had not spat the coffee to his _face._

"You're _what_?" She asked, moving the cup out of her way and leaning forward across the table. " _Propose_. To _Simon_ ," he repeated. An old lady on the table next to them turned to look at him, frowning. He raised and eyebrow. She looked away, mumbling under her breath. Clary, on the other hand, was beaming. "That's great news! I'm so happy for you," she said, her smile radiating. Raphael could see why Simon liked her, now. "Thank you," he said. "Why are you telling me now?" She asked, and Raphael started to wonder the same. "You're Simon's best friend, and he values your opinion a lot. I wanted to make sure you'd be alright with this," he finally explained. Clary smiled at him softly. "You really care about him, don't you?"

When he'd woken up a few hours ago, Raphael had not been expecting to find himself sitting in a café with Clary Fray to talk about his _feelings_. He let himself think about Simon, probably still curled under a blanket on their bed, snoring. He hated his snoring. Well, to a degree. It was a bit endearing, really. "I do," he said. "I love him." Clary nearly _cooed_ , and Raphael decided enough was enough. "So, now you know," he said, standing up. "Try to keep it a secret from Simon, please?" She smirked. " _Mis labios están sellados_ ," she vowed. At Raphael's shocked look, she explained, "I took Spanish for three years. I still know some things."

Raphael very much hoped she'd never overheard him talking to Simon in Spanish.

 **...**

As he knocked on the door and waited, Raphael took notice of the little things around him. This was Simon's _home_. There was an old football in the corner of the yard, covered in dirt. Somehow, Raphael couldn't picture Simon playing football. The door sign read _Lewis_ , and Raphael briefly remembered _his_ old home, before he was turned. But it did no good to think about that, anymore.

The door swung open, revealing a woman in her early twenties. Rebecca Lewis, Simon's sister. She looked at Raphael, who stared back. "Good evening," he said politely. "We don't buy or sell, and no, I don't want to hear about Jesus," she replied, and was about to close the door when Raphael said, "This is about Simon." The door opened again, slowly. Rebecca looked at him again, but this time with care. She beckoned him to come in.

Raphael walked into what he presumed was the living room, followed by Rebecca. He sat down. She didn't offer coffee or tea, which Raphael was grateful for. He didn't want to stay for too long. "So," she started. "Who are you, and how do you know Simon? And are you..." Rebecca trailed off, but Raphael got the idea. "My name is Raphael Santiago. Yes, I'm a vampire." He looked to see if his name sparked recognition in her, but it didn't. His lips twitched. "Apparently Simon hasn't mentioned me. That's fine. Would've made this easier if he had, but of course Simon has to make my life as difficult as possible." She smirked. "He has a tendency to do that," she agreed. "But, um, really. Who are you? To him."

 _Good question_ , he thought. "I can't read Simon's mind, and he is poor with expressing his emotions clearly with words, so I can't answer for him. But I'm his... _partner_. _Novio_. Whatever you want to call it." Rebecca's eyes widened comically large. "Simon has a _boyfriend_?" She whispered. "How come he never told me? How long have you been seeing each other?" "Two years or so," he replied. "Simon kept this from me for _two years_? That _fucker_ ," she breathed out. Raphael smirked. "I'm sure he had his reasons." She shook her head, astonished.

"Is that what you came here to tell me?" She finally asked, after she somewhat recovered from her shock. He looked at the floor, searching for words. "No, I'm here because I'm somewhat old-fashioned. I didn't really want to ask your mother, after what Simon has told me about her, and you're his closest family member." He sighed, lifting his head to look at Rebecca. "I love Simon, and I'm planning on proposing to him soon."

If the news about them dating had left her astonished, now she looked flabbergast. "You're... you... You're proposing? To Simon?" Raphael started to wish he'd just gone straight to ask Simon, without going around telling other people first. "I am." "And... you want my, what, _permission_?" "That's right." She laughed softly, leaning back on her chair. "Yeah, sure. Go for it, man. Simon's a handful, but I'm sure you can manage him if you've already been dating for two years. _Jesus Christ_ ," she broke into quiet, disbelieving laughter again. "I'm gonna _skin_ him for keeping this from me the next time he visits," she said bitterly.

Raphael decided he liked Simon's sister a lot.

 **...**

Raphael didn't want to admit it to himself, but he was _nervous_. His stomach hurt, and he kept looking at the door, ready to bolt. Simon eventually noticed that something was wrong, and turned to look at him, frowning. "Are you alright?" He asked from where he was lying next to Raphael on their bed. The television was on, playing some new show Simon was into. Raphael hummed. "I, uh. Yeah. I'm fine," he coughed, trying to keep his voice even. _It shouldn't be this difficult_. Simon still looked concerned. "You sure? I mean, you don't have, like, like _vampire cancer_ or something? You're not dying? More than you already are, I mean. That sounded offenssive. It wasn't meant to be," Simon rambled, steadily looking more and more nervous. Raphael smiled.

"No, I'm not dying. Don't be so fucking dramatic, Simon." He bit his lip, reaching for his pocket, and curled his fingers around the ring box. "It's just. Well." Another hum. "Simon," he tried again. "I've lived a long life. And I've known a lot of people, mundanes and vampires and Shadowhunters, a whole lot. But you, you're... You're different, to me. Even though you're _infuriating_ at times, and really get on my nerves, and have a fascinating habit of almost getting yourself killed frequently, I fell in love with you." Simon opened his mouth. "I don't really-"

"Let me finish, please. I fell in love with you, and I hope I'll never start not loving you. We have a forever, unless you _do_ actually manage to die even under my protection, but even that feels like not enough, sometimes." Raphael took a deep breath, trying to will his want to pass out away. "And Simon, I want to know..." He glanced at the TV, where someone was shooting the trees around him. Raphael wished he'd had something more romantic playing in the background as he proposed, but as it was, beggars can't be choosers. He took the box out of his pocket and opened it, he hoped, smoothly. "Will you marry me, Simon?"

Simon was staring at the ring with a mixture of shock and amazement. "You, you are... That's... That's a-" Simon tore his eyes away to look at Raphael, who tried to smile encouragingly. "Raphael," he managed to get out. "That's my name, yes." This wasn't going according to the plan. Raphael realized he hadn't really _had_ a plan. "It's good that you still remember that." Simon tried his best to form words. "I, I wasn't- I mean, I never expected- _you're propos_ -" he took another break, trying to get his breathing under control. "Hey," Raphael said, "I'm supposed to be the one panicking here." Simon nodded, then shook his head, then looked at the ring again.

"Yes," he said after a good long minute of staying silent, just as Raphael had considered calling Clary to come over to help him. Simon looked at him, laughing. Albeit a bit hysterically, but he was laughing regardless. " _Yes_ ," he repeated. Raphael's face broke into a smile. He took the ring out of the box, putting in on Simon's finger. Then he removed it. Simon frowned. "Hey, now, I just agreed to your proposal," he protested. Raphael shushed him. "I forgot to show you the inscripting. I had Magnus do it." Simon looked horrified. "Magnus _knows_?" Raphael decided it was best not to mention that so did Alec, Clary, by now probably Jace and his sister.

Simon looked at the inside of the ring, reading the text. Then he smiled, turning his head to kiss Raphael, both of them falling down on the bed. Raphael looked up at Simon, grinning. "You like it?" He asked. Simon grinned back at him, pecking him on the lips again. "I _love it_."

 **...**

 _la eternidad es nuestro - r.s & s.l_

 _eternity is ours - r.s & s.l_


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Oops. So, a second chapter? Enjoy!**

 **...**

Simon looked at the ring on his finger, smiling widely. He was _married_. Well, engaged to be married, but that was a technicality. He was going to have a _husband_. If someone had told him, before all of this had started, that Simon would be proposed to by a seventy year old vampire, he would've told them they were tripping. Yet here he was.

Simon took a deep breath, knocking on Magnus' door. Raphael had insisted that he didn't need to personally go thank Magnus, but Simon figured it was just common courtesy. It was Alec who opened the door, wearing Magnus' shirt. Or at least Simon thought it was Magnus' shirt, because it read _CUTE BOYS CALL ME_ in pink glittery letters, and Simon had a hard time believing Alec would voluntarily buy something like that. Alec raised a brow at Simon.

"Alexander? Who is it?" Magnus called from somewhere in the apartment. Alec turned his head slightly without taking his eyes off Simon. "It's Raphael's new fiancé!" He called back. Simon smiled. _Raphael's fiancé._ It had a nice ring to seconds later Magnus appeared behind Alec, grinning. "Simon," he said. "Do come in."

Soon Simon was sitting on the same chair Raphael had occupied some days ago, and, having declined anything to drink, was instead holding a chocolate chip cookie in his hands. "I, uh. You do realize this'll taste like dust, to me?" He asked. Magnus rolled his eyes, shrugging nonchalantly. "The one time I try to be nice," he sighed, waving his hand. The cookie disappeared. "Anyway," Magnus changed the subject, "why are you here?" Alec, who was sitting beside him, elbowed him. Magnus frowned at Alec, then looked at Simon with a smile. "Not that you shouldn't be here, because we are _delighted_ to have you as our guest. I was just wondering, to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" He turned to look at Alec again. "There, Alexander, was I polite enough?" Alec looked satisfied.

Simon felt lost. "I just... Raphael told me that you engraved the ring, so I wanted to thank you." Magnus brightened up considerably. " _The ring_ ," he said. Simon fought the urge to say _my precious_. "Yeah, do you want to see it? Wait no, you've... you've _already_ seen it, 'cause you, uh... did the engraving. Nevermind." Alec laughed. "Well, I haven't," he said and stood up. "Can I?" Simon nodded, grinning. Alec took his hand, looking at the ring. "It's beautiful," he mumbled. Simon saw Magnus' left eye twitch. He coughed, retreating his hand. "Anyway, you did a great job with the inscription, Magnus. I'm thankful. _We_ are thankful, even if Raphael has a hard time admitting that he appreciates your work."

Alec returned back to his place next to Magnus, who nodded in acknowledgement. "I was more than happy to help," he said. "Especially since I can't engrave _my_ engagement ring yet." Alec pursed his lips, rolling his eyes. "I told you, I don't want to get married yet." "We wouldn't even _be_ married, Alexander, just _engaged_."

Simon started to realize what Raphael had meant when he'd said it'd be easier to just call.

 **...**

Simon had been excited to be the first one to break the news to Clary. He'd been looking forward to seeing her reaction, and then gush about ' _what? proposal?'_ with 'd thought he'd get to shock her with something for once in his life.

This was why, when he called Clary, he was a tiny bit disappointed when she replied to his " _Raphael proposed to me!_ " with a " _Well, he sure didn't sit around waiting, huh?_ ". Simon frowned, blinking rapidly. "Wait, what?" He asked, taken aback, "You _knew_?" He could picture her biting her lip, scrunching her nose. "Yeah," she admitted, sounding guilty, "Raphael told me before he proposed." Simon sighed. "He _did_?" She snickered. "Keeping secrets from his husband already," she teased, clearly over Simon's grief already. " _Fiancé_ ", he corrected, feeling his lips twitch into a tiny smile. "Mmhm," she hummed happily, "sure. But soon you'll be his husband. And he only told me because he wanted to make sure I'd be alright with it. He's such a _romantic_ ," she explained.

Simon gulped nervously. "And you are, right? Alright with it, I mean? Like, it's not too weird or-" She sighed. " _Simon_ , of _course_ I'm alright with it! After everything we've been through, I'm couldn't be happier for you." She paused, then added, "Although, please don't take his last name when you do get married. I don't think I could stand it if your name was Simon Santiago." Simon laughed, flopping down on his bed. "No, that doesn't sound pretty good, does it? What about Simon Lewis-Santiago? Has a nice ring to it, don't you think?" She thought for a moment. "Yeah, sure. Lewis-Santiago. Makes you sound important." "I _am_ important," he said, mildly offended. " _Sure_ , Simon. To Raphael, maybe. And me, of course."

"Of course," he agreed. "You're important to me, too." She snorted. "Yeah, I _better_ be. I'm your best friend, after all. Just because you marry some fancy vampire doesn't change that." He smiled. "It doesn't change anything between us, no. 'Sides, you'll probably marry Jace, someday. I can't wait to tease you about _that_." She gasped. " _Simon_ , I'm astonished you'd even _suggest_ something like that!" He laughed loudly.

 **...**

"Simon," Rebecca said as she opened the door. Then she punched his shoulder, hissing, "how _dare_ you not tell me about your boyfriend!" Simon's old neighbour was peeking over the fence separating the houses, interested. He didn't even bother to pretend he wasn't eavesdropping. "Can we talk about this inside?" Simon begged, shuffling his feet. She pursed her lips, stepping aside. "Fine. But you're not getting away with this easily, Si." He hadn't expected anything less, really.

They sat in the living room. Simon fidgeted with his ring, turning it around in his finger. This drew Rebecca's attention. "So he _did_ propose," she said, sounding impressed. "I kinda thought he was maybe joking." Simon huffed. "Yeah, so did I for a second when he whipped the box out." He remembered how nervous Raphael had looked, how _human_. "But I'm glad he wasn't. Kidding, I mean." Rebecca smiled at him fondly, then leaned forward, leaning her elbows against her knees and resting her chin on her palm. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, sounding somber. "If it was because you didn't think I'd accept you, or whatever, I don't-" She closed her mouth as Simon shook his head.

"No, I didn't think you'd mind that. It's just that, well. He's a vampire clan leader," Simon said. Rebecca didn't look too fazed by that. He continued. "And at first I thought that, if things went horribly wrong, I'd have to keep you safe. And the less you knew about the whole..." He searched for a proper word, "The whole vampire underground thing, the better. Including how close I was to Raphael. Then, I don't know," he shrugged. "Then time just passed, and it would've been too awkward to tell you anymore. I'm sorry," he apologized. Rebecca squinted her eyes. "So you thought you'd, what? Wait until you got _married_ to tell me?" Simon dragged a hand over his face, sighing. " _No_. Well, _maybe_. I don't know. I didn't think he was going to propose in the first place." She still looked like she wanted to punch him, but Simon thought her eyes softened at the corners. Which might've been wishful thinking, but he wanted to believe.

"Alright. You know what, fine," she said. "It's done, it's in the past, now I know. Now let me see that ring or I swear to God, I will kick your ass, Si." He chuckled. "You'd kick my ass anyway." She smirked. "True."

He was about to leave (after Rebecca had told him for the tenth time how ' _fucking gorgeous_ ' the ring was), when he remembered something and stopped, halfway through the door. "Rebecca," he called out. She turned to look at him, tilting her head. "Yeah?" He took a deep breath, biting his lip. "When we have the actual wedding, will you, um. Will you give me away?" She looked shocked for a few seconds, before her face broke into a grin. "Of course, Simon. Just remember to send me the invitation."

Simon hadn't felt happier in a long time.

 **...**

Simon slammed the door of their room open, storming in. Raphael paused the television, turning to look at him. "Simon? Is everything alright?" Simon frowned darkly. "You forgot to mention to me that half of the _city_ already knew about the proposal before _I_ did," he grumbled. Raphael didn't look as scared as Simon had hoped he would. "Don't exaggarate, Simon," he responded calmly. "I only told Magnus because I needed his help, and Clary because she's your closest friend, and your sister because I wanted her permission. She's lovely, by the way." Simon opened his mouth to protest some more, then stopped. "Wait," he said, "you went to ask for my sister's _permission_? For real?" Raphael looked somewhat embarrassed. "Close the door, please." Simon did, then sat down next to Raphael.

"Yes, I went to ask for your sister's permission. It was important to me to... have your family's _approval._ " Simon grinned. "That's so sweet, though," he said, every ounce of annoyance slowly slipping from him. "I have my good days," Raphael mumbled, un-pausing the TV. Simon glanced at it.

"Are you watching _America's Next Top Model_?"

"Yes."

"You're so fucking weird, Raphael. How do you feel about becoming Raphael Lewis-Santiago, by the way?"

"Why can't it be Santiago-Lewis?"

"Because I want it to be Lewis-Santiago, and you love me so much that you'll be fine with it?"

"I despise you."

Silence. Then, "Lewis-Santiago sounds fine."


End file.
